Last annual update:
The majority of Arkansas-based banks were among the leading lenders to “The Natural State” businesses through the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 7(a) program. Whether your business is a restaurant, auto repair, medical practice, funeral home, veterinary or hotel, your mission is to exceed your customer expectations. So, if you’re ready to step up your business to the next level, here are the top SBA Lenders in Arkansas:
Top SBA lenders in Arkansas
| AR Rank | Arkansas Bank | Bank HQs | # of Loans | Avg Interest | Avg AR Loan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arvest Bank | Fayetteville, AR | 34 | 6.0% | $210,224 |
| 2 | U.S. Bank | Cincinnati, OH | 24 | 7.7% | $27,433 |
| 3 | First Financial Bank | El Dorado, AR | 18 | 6.5% | $937,267 |
| 4 | First Service Bank | Greenbrier, AR | 14 | 6.3% | $353,071 |
| 5 | Southern Bancorp Bank | Arkadelphia, AR | 12 | 5.1% | $964,342 |
| 6 | First Security Bank | Searcy, AR | 10 | 6.4% | $269,000 |
| 7 | FNBC Bank | Ash Flat, AR | 9 | 6.2% | $194,067 |
| 8 | BancorpSouth Bank | Tupelo, MS | 6 | 5.1% | $348,700 |
| 9 | Celtic Bank | Salt Lake City, UT | 6 | 6.4% | $584,217 |
| 10 | Equity Bank | Andover, KS | 6 | 6.2% | $264,600 |
SBA loans – Arkansas
A note about these Arkansas SBA lenders – People frequently ask us if one of the banks above is 1) on the Arkansas preferred lender list 2) an approved lender in Arkansas, or 3) participating in the Arkansas SBA Express lending program. All these questions revolve around whether a given SBA bank makes small business SBA loans in Arkansas and can they process SBA loans quickly. The answer is yes, of course. These are not the small banks that only make a few SBA loans a year and do not understand the SBA 7(a) loan program. These are the banks that have made the most SBA loans in Arkansas. We analyze thousands of SBA loans each year and rank lenders based on recent activity. We would be remiss if we did not mention that although many banks will only lend in certain geographies, there are a handful of extremely aggressive nationwide SBA lenders who will lend anywhere. These lenders understand the SBA program as well as anyone and move very quickly, so we recommend not limiting your search to your home state. If you utilize our lender match tool, we can find you suitable SBA banks based on your geography, industry, and company and size at no cost or obligation to you to save you valuable time.